Falling Into The Dark
by randomidentity
Summary: Sakura is left without a single shred of memory, taken in by a tall mysterious stranger to a world that existed right under her nose, UNDERGROUND. She soon finds that she wishes to stay. But what about her past? Should she just fall into the dark? Itasaku
1. Fall

There is nothing scarier than having nothing, and out of all the nothings there is nothing scarier than having _nothing to remember_.

Unfortunately, that was exactly the kind of nothing I was experiencing. So you could imagine the kind of panic I was feeling as I sat hidden from the full moon by deep foliage, and by man's most intrinsic invention- fire. It crackled mockingly, casting deep shadows on the ancient tree trunks and drying leaves around me.

My mind was an endless abyss of nothing. It held not a single shred of memory. I was living the true meaning of _lost_ and _terrified._

To add further insult to injury, I wasn't alone in the dense forest that held my empty shell of a person. There was a man. But the way the creature held himself reminded me more of a proud statue, a regal portrait, and he could've easily passed off as one with his striking beauty.

I hadn't seen my reflection since waking up to endless confusion. However, I already doubted that it could compare to the way his thick dark hair gleamed in its tight ponytail past his shoulders; to the way his flawless pale skin peeked in spots his black and red cloak left uncovered; to the way his eyes seemed to hold a smoldering fire of their own; to the way he towered over me with his glorious height.

"Who are you?" My voice, very alien to my ears, was high-pitched.

I was _female_. I should've already gathered this from the way I responded to his masculine splendor.

Yet, apprehension seemed to suffuse my veins warningly. Was this some kind of defense mechanism or trusty intuition I held? Had I seen this man before? I wouldn't know.

"That is clearly not important." He took a step forward cautiously and I felt myself freeze.

"Did I know you?" I inquired again, crawling closer to the fire as a chilly breeze swept the forest floor.

"_Did?_" He looked confused, but not even half as confused as _I _was.

"I can't remember anything." I told him calmly, like I was announcing the weather. It seemed useless to pretend otherwise; if he wanted to, he could've killed me ages ago. No matter how good a warrior I was before…

I took a deep breath to steady my speeding heart. Think positive. I was stuck in the dark with a gorgeous guy, how bad could it be?

His eyes widened in surprise, hopefully from my words and _not_ my thoughts, then they turned calculating. "…amnesia?"

"I believe so." I replied thoughtfully. Ha-ha, _thoughtlessly_ actually.

He just stared, drinking in my face as he slowly advanced until he stood by the fire. "You won't survive if I leave you here."

I gulped. "…probably."

"But then, you wouldn't stand a chance where _I'm_ going." He frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. I realized that he would've cut quite an intimidating figure had it not been for the print of his cloak… red clouds, seriously? He could _so_ do better than that- red lightning, maybe?

"Says who?" I demanded, crossing my arms too, albeit more indignantly.

I swear a smile almost made its way onto his sensuous lips. The man was as hard as he was handsome. "…says all the deadly ninjas inhabiting the town."

I stood up, startled. "_Ninjas?_"

"Oh, yes." He murmured gravely. "You were one once."

I suddenly felt dizzy. I shouldn't have stood up so fast, or maybe it was the swirling red commas in his eyes… how was I supposed to know?

The world started spinning until it was pitch-black. These days I seemed to be making a bad habit of falling into the dark...

* * *

"Wake up, honey. You ain't gonna survive in this godfirsaken hole if ya let people catch ya sleepin'." A husky, deeply accented voice drawled, shaking me out of empty sleep. It belonged to a woman I was sure- a fact that was strangely comforting. Finally I had something in common with someone.

"Where am I?" I groaned, stretching my stiff limbs over clean white sheets. I had slept almost too well and getting up seemed such a torture. Slowly did I sit up from the warm, cozy mattress.

The room I was in was circumstance-appropriate. It was unlit and almost bare, like the inner workings of my mind (not to say that I was witless; just hollow, vacant, _void _of recollection). Only the necessary furnishings were made available to me: a bed and a door opposite it, a mirror stuck to the wall, and an unpretentious cabinet.

There was just one dimmed light bulb stuck in the middle of the ceiling and no windows. Despite the resulting lack of ventilation and light, I felt the cold and I could easily see that the stranger was very attractive.

She had long, dark tresses and bright eyes with a color that was, so far, undistinguishable. Every time I woke up puzzled, I seemed to be surrounded by angels. Did I die or something?

"Ya are in deep shit naw, love." She replied dryly, equally fascinated by _my_ features. That got the curiosity churning. I stood up and walked to the mirror on the right wall with respect to my bed.

It was a plain square, about one square foot in area, and enough to catch a full view of my physiognomy. Pale skin, fair shoulder-length hair, and light eyes stared back at me blankly. I looked much like an albino in the dark. It wasn't a very flattering lighting, but my features were soft and sweet so that was some sort of redemption.

I sighed, turning back to the girl at the foot of the bed. "What now?"

She wrinkled her nose in distaste, scrutinizing my attire. "We have ta get ya out a those clothes first. I think I have sumthin' in those shelves." On her way to the cabinet she looked over her shoulder at me to announce matter-of-factly, "I'm Kari."

I just stared back, incapable of supplying my own title.

Kari winked as if she knew what was really going on and went right back to the task of obtaining a suitable set of clothes for pitiful me. "Don't worry; _he _knows what ya're called."

"How appeasing..." I muttered, thinking of my mysterious savior and hugging myself as she pulled garment after garment out of several unsuspecting drawers. It was then that I noticed how daringly clothed she was in a _tiny_ black dress and knee-high boots. It made me nervous that she be the one to dress me.

"Here ya are." Kari exclaimed gleefully, pulling out a long, sleeveless dress. I almost sighed in relief at its modesty until I saw dangerously high slits on both its sides.

"You can't expect me to…" She smiled slyly before approaching me swiftly. _Riiiip…_The witch managed to tear a huge gash into my homely top. "_Hey!_"

"Now I can."

For a split-second I stared down at the smooth pale skin of my chest, subsequently holding up my shirt to shield it from view. _Yep, definitely female._

"Relax, love, we're all girls here." She claimed, hurling the offensive piece of clothing at me. I took it numbly and quickly undressed myself.

"…in the whole building?" I inquired, feeling so much better at the thought. I pulled the material over my head and onto my body. It was soft and flexible.

"Nah; just in this room." She clarified with a long meaningful look. "But ya better get used ta it. Ya might hear some bedsprings screechin' from the rooms beside ya, if ya know what I mean…"

I felt myself going green. Judging from her skimpy clothes and her suggestive statement alone, I guessed that we were in a _brothel_. I shuddered, thinking of what might have happened on the bed I had occupied just minutes ago. I fervently hoped I was wrong about this place. Did _tall mysterious man_ honestly believe I was going to get myself into this kind of work? _Screw him. _Not literally, I mean.

I must've been horribly transparent because she sighed tiredly. "It's alright darlin', we ain't gonna expect ya ta do any a the dirty work around here. Ya look too much like a lady fir that."

"No?" I pressed, despite the reassurance supplied. Whatever I had to do couldn't be any kind of glamorous if I was in a brothel…

"Yah, yir gonna manage the ills." Kari sniffed as if she felt- as well as I did- that I had no clue how to cure.

"How am I going to-" My question was lost as the door to the room swung open. Light rushed in and it seemed blinding prior to my eyes' adjustment.

Before long I saw our intruder. She was perspiring and, of course, scantily clad in an oversized button-down t-shirt, staring at us suspiciously as if _we'd_ been the ones doing something erotic.

"Uchiha wants the girl." She growled, evidently not as amicable as Kari. Possibly because she wasn't as becoming as Kari either, with dry auburn locks and brown eyes too close together.

"Is he the…?" I started reluctantly. My eyes looked beyond her to the sparsely illuminated corridors, searching for my handsome stranger. Simple wooden doors exactly like the one of my current room peeked out from the white walls innocently, much unlike their room's inhabitants.

"…guy who found you? Yes, indeed." The redhead continued in a patronizing tone. "And now he's asking for you again for some unimaginable reason."

"Oh, lay off a her Akane." Kari snapped, getting up from the bed to lay a warm hand on my shoulder. "She's with me."

Akane raised a precariously plucked brow but didn't comment as Kari led me out of the darkness and into the harsh fluorescent light of my future workplace.

The corridors were better called 'tunnels' for their lack of windows or any kind of decoration. Kari didn't seem to mind, though, as we maneuvered out of the labyrinthine path into a foyer. Well, something that could pass off as one. It was as stark as the rest of the place with signature white walls and minimal dark wood furniture.

A crowd of men (with questionable morals) were lining up in front of a reception desk opposite the supposed entrance of the building- double doors flung wide open. I hadn't realized (from the lack of humans circulating the system of corridors) how popular the place was.

A few males turned to stare as we walk passed them on our way to the entrance. One of them pointed at me and whispered to his companions. I looked away and quickened my pace. _No can do, boys. _

Kari, who had seen the whole spectacle, guffawed and elbowed me teasingly. "Pity ya can't work here, love. Business woulda been _bangin'_." I don't know if the pun was intended or not, but I didn't care to find out.

I marched out of the doors eagerly only to stop in my tracks, to stare at the man making his way up the stars to where I was.

It was him again, my rescuer or my captor depending on how you looked at it, looking as handsome as ever as he walked lithely up the stone steps.

His dark eyes (didn't they have red commas before?) glowing up at me in the moonlight. His dark hair was down today, framing his pale skin and making him look younger, maybe just a few years older than me. Then I remembered that I didn't know my exact age so how could I know whether or not I was too old for him? Okay, maybe I could _sometimes_ be witless.

"It seems you're too caught up staring at me to realize it is freezing cold out here." He remarked with a slight twitch of his lip. I knew now that it was his way of smiling.

It was, in fact, unbelievably cold and I knew I was reddening at the realization. I scrambled for a good explanation. Then I saw his familiar cloak swinging in the strong breeze. "I was just wondering why you always wear that same cloak."

He raised a brow, doubting my explanation or incredulous at my choice of question, I didn't know but I hoped it was the latter.

"I remain loyal to a band of murderers I joined years ago." He saw me shivering and hesitantly took the said cloak off to hand it to me. He had a black long-sleeved shirt underneath- unintentionally providing a good view of his lean athletic physique, I noted- over black pants.

I put it on and glanced back at the brothel. Surprise, surprise, it had white walls and no windows even on the outside. Kari and Akane hadn't followed me out. I wondered why. I also wondered whether or not I'd be seeing them again, whether I would truly be working there.

I turned back to 'Uchiha' and followed swiftly until I was right by him as our heels crashed on the pavement. "You can't be serious about that murderer thing."

He didn't reply and I chose to force my attention on the street we covered. It was craftily paved and desolate. The buildings it bordered were, in comparison, very shabby, irregularly shaped, and busting with people. This must be the _darker_ side of town with the brothels and slums and people who hung their laundry where anyone could see. At least it was beautifully paved.

Uchiha looked up and I then noticed that we weren't in the moonlight, not at all. There were openings in the 'sky'. Why "openings"? They provided the light and had ladders (as if they led to another world) and pipelines hanging down from them. A good way to describe them is to say they resembled larger stars that didn't twinkle at all.

I rubbed my eyes and looked back at them in astonishment. They remained as they were, like portals to a more lighted dimension, possibly one with an available sun.

"What…?" I whispered, only to have him cut me off.

"We're underground. Those are the ways back to the surface, where we shared pipelines with those from above." He explained wearily. Uchiha didn't seem to be worried about me taking it all in at once. We were miles under the surface, under where I can assume I spent all of my life until now.

"So you kidnapped me." I teased, getting a glare in return.

"Nothing's stopping you from getting back up there." He informed me coldly, like he loathed being thought of as a captor. Or maybe he was embarrassed that he had kidnapped someone as useless as _me._ "However, I would advise against it. Not only are you completely vulnerable without your memories, you will also find that you are quite sought after in _that_ world."

We had rounded a corner and the streetlights shone upon the better part of town. Here the buildings were lit up, easily contesting the sun, maybe because the said heavenly body wasn't accessible.

There were more people out on the streets; most of them looked like they had spent the night partying in their shiny fancy clothes. Their eyes were bloodshot and dazed staring back at me as they stumbled through the stone sidewalks. Such are the spoiled, rich elite.

"Who was I?" I queried softly, looking up at his brooding face. Did the guy ever smile?

He turned to look back at me emotionlessly. "You were the best medic ninja in the world, Sakura Haruno."

"_Sakura…_" I smiled. I liked it. Likewise it was such a relief that I had done good things in my past. I worried that I had been just like Kari and Akane once upon a time. "You can call me that. What about you?"

He looked away swiftly. "I'm not someone you'd like to remember."

"Okay, Mr. Not-someone-you'd-like-to-remember, do you have a nickname?"

He snorted, taking my arm and leading me past a crowd of suspicious-looking males. A gang? It didn't matter- they saw my guide and made a break for it.

I looked back at their retreating silhouettes and considered doing the same. If a group of about twenty men evacuated when Uchiha passed then he was probably highly dangerous, or a cop. He didn't look like the law-enforcing type. My stomach suddenly felt queasy.

He must have sensed my apprehension because he suddenly let go of my arm and accelerated. Before us was a huge, dark mansion looking out of a high gate.

I noticed just now that there were no plants in the underground (no gardens, just gates) they couldn't survive in the meager sunlight. I was starting to believe him about it all.

As we neared the looming stone gate, I noticed a figure perched high up on it, gazing down at us. Before I could catch a good glimpse of him, he took off, landing with a thud on the other side of the gate, presumably heading to the mansion.

"Who…?" I caught myself, seeing my companion frown almost imperceptibly.

I was getting handy at reading the furtively flickering emotions on his face. Was it a natural talent of mine to translate peoples' emotions? Boy, having amnesia was damn frustrating, like walking in circles searching for guiding marks on the trees around and finding none whatsoever.

"It might be wise to note that I _despise_ questions, particularly _foolish_ ones." He drawled, as massive steel gates swiveled back in welcome without another person in sight.

I felt my fists curl up as my temper rose from its deep sleep. _That_ definitely felt familiar. I was fiery, all right. "Well I despise _you,_ Uchiha, but you can't just drop dead, now can you?"

He stared at me frostily, before proceeding into the darkness surrounding his mansion, surrounding anything far enough in the distance. I refused to put up with his despicable attitude and remained on the outside until the huge steel gates closed with a clang.

I then fell to my knees unceremoniously and broke down, choking back tears. _I was doomed to no memory, caught in a crazy world with no sunshine, no rain… brought by one so cold and dark, like a cellar. That's what he is, a cellar, an old rusty stinky cellar. _The reality of it all was crushing- I had every right to cry.

"I need my cloak back."

"Go to hell!"


	2. Find

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* * *

"Can I _please _have my cloak back?" He was trying to be more polite about it.

"Can you _please _go to hell?"

I wouldn't give up his cloak, not for the world. And it stayed where it was, billowing around my stooping figure in the breeze. Uchiha must've figured it too, so I was banned from his resplendent mansion until I came to my senses and returned it. I honestly didn't get where he was coming from- it's just a cloak and I look so much more adorable in it than he did!

Being left to myself in new surroundings, there was only one thing left to do- explore. I had so many unanswered questions, so many blanks to fill, and a huge amount of looking around to do if I wanted to fully satisfy my curiosity about this place.

I got up, a bit unsteady from my little fit of tears, and finally allowed myself room to just _stare_. I stared at the never-ending darkness that settled over the horizon. I stared at the uniform stone mansions in this part of town, wondering how on earth their builders were able to bring construction equipment _and_ materials down here. I stared at people around, wordlessly imploring them to explain to me why they preferred sunless eternity.

They all stared back- probably mystified by the pale girl in the dress with the slits up her thighs. _What is _she_ doing in this side of town_, they might've asked. _Well_, I'd tell them, _I'm not so sure myself_.

As it so happens, one of them did have the guts to come up to me and inquire. He was, of course, under the influence of intoxication, slurring like there was no tomorrow. "Heya miss, what are you doing up so late?"

I inspected him from head to toe, from the dark hair to the expensive white jacket to the leather boots. _Bored r__ich teen coming out to play,_ I thought confidently. "It's actually before sundown." I pointed to our sky. Light from the openings almost seemed to twinkle down at us.

He let out a throaty laugh. "It's _always_ late here, darling. The party never ends!"

A couple of his guy friends appeared out of nowhere, clutching half empty bottles of who-knows-what alcoholic beverage. What bothered me was that they seemed to have a lot of control despite their current state. Were they indeed all deadly ninjas as Uchiha had claimed? I wouldn't wait around to find out.

"I see. Well, have fun!" I called, hastily making my way past them. I looked back after a few moments to see that they didn't follow. Thank goodness for small mercies. I would have to be more careful.

I walked and walked and walked aimlessly, finding no one sober enough to aid me in my quest for answers.

Then, when I thought I was going to give up and turn over the darn cloak to Uchiha, I heard the soft patter of footsteps. They seemed innocent at first but then I noticed that they seemed to belong to nobody. Either that or someone was trying to remain incognito as he/she followed me.

I looked to the sterling stone mansions with their high gates and wondered if their owners would offer me protection.

The footsteps became louder. I shivered, not from the cold, and continued walking the streets to numb the oppressive anxiety overcoming me. What happened to the party people? Why were the streets so barren now? Had they sensed the arrival of a tormentor?

I broke into a run, surprising myself with my speed and agility, as the footsteps multiplied alarmingly. _Now_ my ninja skills show up- it was about time!

Abruptly the steps ceased and I slowed to a leisurely pace. Had he/she given up? Had I tired him/her with my amazing speed?

I turned in my tracks and everything shifted to slow motion as the blood started to rush to my face…

_A figure in dark ninja-wear was airborne, his destination- me. He held a curved sword in his hand and was aiming it straight to my heart when a kunai pierced through the shadows and right through his abdomen. He fell to the ground with thud that oscillated through my ears unendingly. _

I instinctively reached for my heart, the organ he had so cold-bloodedly targeted.

Uchiha entered into the scene of the crime and an interrogation ensued.

"_Who sent you?_" His voice was calm, but frightening black commas started swirling in his reddening gaze. It was a deadly combo. I had no doubt in my mind that _he_ had thrown the lethal kunai. It terrified me to be in his presence now that I had a rough picture of what he was capable of.

"No one. I found out that _Sakura Haruno_ was in town." He sputtered, blood spraying forth from his mouth as he lay reclined on the pavement.

Uchiha knelt next to him, expression unreadable. "Who informed you?"

"It isn't hard to notice a pink-haired girl walking around in circles." He coughed out blood now, and the sight made my knees turn to jelly.

I dropped to my knees and let my hand hover over his form. Green light flowed from my fingers slowly, at the same rate as the wound began to heal.

"_No_." Uchiha grabbed my hand and the magic stopped. I gasped, blown away by what I had subconsciously done. I was a _healer, _medic nin, just as Uchiha had said.

"You _are_ Haruno." The man said in awe. Then Uchiha took out a kunai, just like the one he had just used, and slashed the man's throat in one clean swipe. It was a quick death, and one I'll remember always.

After retrieving both his weapons and cleaning them on the dead man's clothes, Uchiha rose. "It's time to go home. You're not safe anymore."

I couldn't hear him anymore after that. All I could see was death.

_"I need you to do this for me, Sakura." A dark-haired, pale-skinned male of about sixteen years stood by a corpse, much like the others that had surrounded them us a battlefield earlier that day. But this one was different, this one was not as fresh. This one looked a lot like the boy who was begging me. This corpse belonged to Itachi Uchiha._

* * *

This time was different. This time I was falling into the light, waking up to sparking candlelight, to the most gorgeous room I had ever seen in my two-day memory. It was of striking sandstone walls, long, narrow windows, and intricately carved wooden furniture. I was a princess in a castle.

A middle-aged woman in a modest white dress was gazing down at me with so much love that I almost thought she was my mother. Then I realized that she had black hair. I now knew I had pink hair. The possibilities of a relation were slim.

"Who...?" I tried to get up but she pushed me back down gently. Then she sat back down on a chair by my queen-sized bed.

"I'm Itachi's mother." She told me with a small smile. I couldn't help but stare- she was probably the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. The cloth was plucked from my temple and placed in a bowl of cool water on a bedside table.

"Itachi?" I inquired, feeling nauseated all of a sudden. What happened to me? I remembered everything up to that horrid flashback, then everything else was blurry and intermittent.

"Itachi Uchiha." She murmured. _Oh._ I remembered the corpse in my flashback/nightmare. Well, I didn't know Uchiha still lived with his parents. I finally had something to tease him about.

"What...?" She seemed to love interrupting me.

"You were in a trance, dear, with a high fever." She took the damp cloth and returned it to my forehead. "It was the first time I'd ever seen someone sleep with eyes wide open."

"I had some sort of flashback or nightmare or something. Did Itachi tell you about my amnesia?" I queried rather pathetically. I felt so helpless as she fussed over my condition.

"He didn't have to." She said, but didn't elaborate. Then she remembered her manners. "Oh, so rude of me not to mention... please call me Mikoto."

I smiled warmly. "Sakura." But her eyes told me that she already knew that. "Did you know me?"

"Not very much, I'm afraid." Mikoto sighed, folding her hands on her lap like a real lady. "I saw you as a little girl then suddenly as a beautiful young woman."

I blushed. "Why?" It all seemed very strange to me. Did she relocate for some time?

"_I died_." The way she was so sure, looking deep into my eyes, made chills rain down my spine. There it was again. First Itachi claimed he was murdered, and now Mikoto. Was the underground a place for the_ insane? _If so, then _I_... I refused to entertain that thought. I had amnesia and that was it.

I jumped out of the covers and right by the side of the bed. It wasn't a very good idea because vertigo claimed me. I would've fallen had the strong arms of Itachi Uchiha not made an apparition around my waist.

"Calm yourself." He ordered with an imposing, unwavering glance. He had his cloak back on, I noticed with a scowl, suddenly speculating about my current attire.

I looked down and saw I had naught but a sheer nightgown on; an verity that made my cheeks flame. "How can I when you've all claimed to have died? I'm clearly not on the same wavelength here!"

"_Enough." _He thundered, and it knocked the air right out of this room, leaving only stillness. He let go of me roughly and I stumbled into a sitting position on the floor.

"_Itachi._" Mikoto whimpered, but he ignored her silent entreaty.

"You will learn not to question but to _obey_." He so icily informed me. "We are telling you nothing but the truth, offer you protection, and you choose to scorn it. Our _death_ was every bit as real as this hellhole of an underground you now reside in."

Then he turned to his mother. "See to her recuperation and restoration as soon as possible. Let her remember only as much as required for the task at hand."

She nodded mutely and looked away as he made his silent but ominous exit from my new chamber. _So he wasn't a momma's boy... good to know._

* * *

The mansion, I found out from Mikoto, was lined with limestone on the outside and sandstone on the inside like most of the mansions around here. Apparently the reason for this was because these materials were easier to come by in the underground, so there was less to carry down from the surface. As for the construction equipment, well, most of the underground occupants were thieves or murderers (or both) so they shamelessly plundered from surface-dwellers.

"So how did the underground come about?" I asked her as she took me on a tour around the enormous mansion. I learned it had a huge library, a swimming pool, a parlour, a training room... and now she was taking me to what she said would be my most favorite room of them all. I was crossing my fingers.

"It's been there for years and years but was only discovered recently." She hardly ever let on with her answers, aggravating my curiosity rather than alleviating it. I guess it was part of Itachi's don't-tell-her-what-she-doesn't-need-to-know program. But really, how could he expect my cooperation when he was openly holding me back? Or maybe he _knew_ that if he told me the whole story I might refuse to collaborate.

We rounded a corner and entered what was, to me, the coolest room in the whole world! Not the most gorgeous-that was reserved for my bedroom- but the coolest.

It had meters and meters of medical books and tools lining glass cabinets on the walls. Beds for patients made the next layer, then mats for healing physical therapy. It surprised me how much I knew about this kind of thing. I guess some memories like how to breathe, how to eat and how to thrust someone's dislocated limb back into place never left you.

"Are you getting more flashbacks, Sakura?" Mikoto asked excitedly.

"No, but this is all looking very inviting and recognizable, Mikoto." I moved to the medical books by the walls. "How did you get all this stuff?"

"Oh, Itachi likes making trips to the surface to get whatever he can." She told me easily, before looking like she regretted sharing.

"So we _can _make trips to the overground." I stated, more to myself, seeing her shake her head from the corner of my eye.

"Itachi doesn't follow it but there's a _schedule_ for when the affluent take their turn to get to travel back to the overground."

"Why?"

"Because we're not to be seen by the overgrounders, we're not supposed to exist anymore." Her tone told me not to probe and further into the subject and I didn't. But my mind was buzzing with so many whys. WHY?

I chose a particularly heavy volume called 'The Traumatic Amnesias' and plunked down on a mat for a quick perusal.

_Post-traumatic Amnesia... state of confusion following an injury... often patients don't remember name or date or time... irregular recall..._

It described exactly what I was experiencing. So I must've hit my head or something to that effect. The question is, did happen accidentally or was it intentional on my part or someone else's? Was there actually something I didn't want to recall? In that case Itachi was working on my side.

But what if he wasn't? What if he was part of a scheme, to erase my memory so he could make me do something that could destroy the world as we know it? Okay, I was being a bit too melodramatic there.

It could have all been an eerie coincidence that this all happened to me. I just didn't like that in my mind I had ten times more question marks with exclamation points after them than periods.

* * *

Dinner in the Uchiha mansion was essential the stiffest event of the day. The liveliest of the participants consisted of the grand rectangular table and it's matching chairs, the chandelier glinting above it all, and the silverware.

Itachi stood at the highest end of the table with the fireplace roaring behind him. To his right side sat his reticent mother, to his left the unusually reserved me. No one was in the mood for talking or eating, despite the preposterous number of plates, filled with mountains of food.

Was this usually how they spent dinner? Pretending to pick at their undoubtedly delicious and abundant food, avoiding each other's gazes, and drifting away.

I cleared my throat, unable to bear the silence any longer. "Compliments to the chef, whoever he or she is."

"_She._" A young woman entered the room from the door to the kitchen. "Hello, Sakura."

I searched her. The dark hair and eyes, pale skin, and insigna on her shirt screamed _Uchiha_ but I had no idea who she was.

As if she'd heard my unspoken question, she replied rather wryly. "I'm Irie Uchiha, Itachi's fiancée."


	3. Fume

**Hey guys, it's me again. A big thank you to my reviewers- you guys helped me by pointing out key notions. Enjoy your reading!**

* * *

"You mean ex-fiancée, of course." Itachi corrected her disdainfully, and I marveled at the immense relief I was experiencing. How unusual…

Irie didn't share the sentiment, however, glowering at him as she took the seat next to me. _Lovely_, I thought sarcastically, _another PMS-ing, bitter female around here. I can barely even handle myself. _

I suppose she had an equally infuriating reason- living with a gorgeous ex. That was, I had to admit, _agonizing_ even if he is a scoundrel.

Still, I remained pondering the basis for their parting… _irreconcilable differences?_ I highly doubted it. For one thing they were very much _alike_, being _cousins. _I didn't even want to ask whether they were first, second, or third cousins. The idea grossed me out. At the back of my mind I wondered whether Harunos have the same repulsive custom, probably not if I was so disgusted by it.

"I'm full." I said, pushing my chair back and leaving my place at the gloomy table.

"Me too." Irie piped, tagging along with me to wherever I was going. I didn't have that part figured out yet, so as we landed in a place out of earshot I told her as much.

"That's alright." She said, looking like she was holding back laughter politely. "We can go up to my room."

The prospect was not quite what I was hoping for but it'd have to do. She seemed nice enough, which I seemed to find suspicious. But maybe that was because I had been around _cold_ people for too damn long.

"How did you know who I was?" I inquired as we glided up the grand staircase. She had a small frame compared to mine so I went at a leisurely pace.

"I'm not supposed to tell you, but let's just say _I died_." She announced dramatically. Whatever she said and however she said it I _knew_ who held the power in this family.

I made a face. "I knew you were going to say that, and before we go on, let me ask, are you all zombies around here?"

"Oh, hell no." She chuckled good-naturedly. I was slowly but surely warming up to the girl. "We're vampires."

"_What?_" I was horrified, but she laughed harder.

"I'm kidding." We had reached a startlingly ebony door, sticking out like a sore thumb around the all-around pastel colorscheme. It looked like Irie had painted it that color herself. It swung open to reveal a similarly hued room with a water bed. Silver display shelves on the wall held hundreds of picture frames and albums. Most of the photographs were of her family but others were artistic representations of nature.

"You're a photographer." I breathed, taking it all in with wide eyes. She was good.

"No shit." She said, collapsing on the water bed and patting the space beside her in welcome. "So how are you holding up?"

I sat down and felt 'the waves' rush around me. It was very comforting. "Not too well."

"If it's Itachi's fault just threaten to kiss him. _That_ should do the trick." She told me wryly.

"You sound like you're speaking from experience." I chanced a glance in her direction. She had her hands tucked behind her head as she gazed up at the ceiling. She was as unreadable as blank paper- not a good sign. "I'm sorry, I didn't think."

"Nah. It's fine. It's _his_ problem, not mine. The asshole doesn't know what love means. I don't even think he's aware of its existence." She complained.

"Or maybe love doesn't know _he_ exists." I proposed, liking the idea.

She beamed at me. "You're probably right, you know. He's probably so fucked up he doesn't have room for anything other than self pity."

"He can join the club." I muttered darkly, finally yielding to the urge to lie down. My body was thrust around a bit before it got to calm waters.

"You don't look like you need self pity, Sakura, just your memory back." Irie told me. Then she stood up and took a photo from a display cabinet beside her bed. "Here. See if you recognize the guys beside you."

I took the photo and assessed its age for a while. It looked like it had been taken recently, maybe within the year. I turned it and stared at the three people in it.

I was there, in the middle and smiling shyly. I looked as old as I was now (maybe eighteen years old?) but with rosier cheeks and medic attire. Despite the way my lips were slightly turned up at the corners I knew I was unhappy- my green eyes had a haunted look which frightened new me.

The guy to my right seemed in much better spirits than I with twinkling blue eyes and the biggest smile I had ever seen. _Naruto._ The name seemed to echo from a distant place in my mind, like he was impossible to forget. Yet, that was all I could remember about him. _Naruto. Naruto Uzumaki. The happy guy…_

To my left was the man I had seen in my flashback. _Sasuke Uchiha,_ he was called. To the new me he was better known as Itachi's brother but to the old me… What had Itachi said? Oh yes, he had been the boy of my dreams, my hero. He looked miserable in the photo, though, pale with dark circles around his obsidian eyes. Had he been so devastated by his brother's, mother's and cousin's death?

"How long ago was this taken, Irie?" I queried shakily.

"About five months ago." She supplied indifferently.

I paled. "So it wasn't long after this that I…"

"…lost your memory." She finished for me knowingly. "Yep. And I have a theory about that."

"What?" I pressed, in urgent need of answers.

"Someone wanted you to forget, Sakura." Irie seemed so convinced. "Someone had your memory taken from you because you had been deemed too dangerous."

"You might've even been killed." She continued, and then pointed to the blonde smiley guy. "But I think _he_ made sure you weren't."

"So you're saying that I was up for execution but my friend lightened the charge?" I felt myself go pale as she nodded vigorously. "But why?"

"_Think_, Sakura." She encouraged ardently. "Think about why they would want to kill a medic ninja."

* * *

I spent all of that night, tossing and turning in my cozy, flowery bed thinking about what Irie had told me.

Why the hell would people want to kill a medic ninja? It seemed ridiculous, unless I started healing their enemies. But even then, it was in our code of conduct to help anybody so they couldn't hold that against us.

_Hey, I remembered part of the code of conduct! _It was a small thing, but it made me happy that I was doing progress even in this harsh environment.

Had I learned secrets from someone I had healed? Highly unlikely. It seemed impossible that I blabbed about those secrets anyway. I wasn't the type to spill.

I spent a while pondering, only coming with dead ends wherever I went with the idea. Why couldn't Irie just tell me? The Uchihas might as well adopt me and change my name to "Frustration Uchiha". I giggled at the thought.

But then, if I became an Uchiha there was a possibility that _I_ would be engaged to Itachi. How loathsome would that be?

Speaking of the devil, he was in my room. Yes, he was pacing by the foot of my bed probably wondering how to wake me.

"What can I do for you, master?" I said, adopting a mock-reverent tone.

I could barely see his eyes in the dark but I knew they were narrowed. "I came to ask you about what Irie said."

"What about it?" I inquired, immediately playing coy. This guy was going ice fishing for secrets. He'd have to drill a hole in the incredibly thick ice before he could get any. Of course, there was the option of melting...

He crossed his arms over his chest, a gesture I was soon getting used to because its power was wearing off. "What did she tell you?"

"It's strictly confidential."

"Sakura..." His tone was highly threatening.

"She told me you don't know what the word love means." I finally provided with a wicked grin.

"_Sakura_." He thundered, unbelieving. Seriously, my name is _not_ a curse word!

"You don't believe me? Ask her yourself. You have more control over us than you know." I shot back, making a sacrifice by sitting up from my covers in my sheer white nightgown. It was very chilly, you know, and I had nothing else to wear until the morning.

His eyes seemed to wander down to my chest then ever so hastily back up to my gaze. What I had seen in his black orbs had left me breathless. "Then why is it that you remain unable to sleep."

_So he knew_, I thought fearfully. I wanted to say, _I was thinking of you,_ just to shake things up but thought better of it. "I was trying to define love."

Itachi rolled his eyes. "A strong positive emotion of regard and affection."

I scoffed. "That's it? That's a dictionary meaning."

"Isn't that what dictionaries are for, to define?" He volleyed promptly.

"But dictionaries are just ink and paper, no real _meaning_. I don't think love can be defined with just words." I said stubbornly, being a bit of a bigot.

"Then you're trying to give substance to love, Sakura, and you can't do that by simply lying there and thinking about it."

He turned on his heel, walked, and was about to turn the doorknob when I said, "I could say the same to you, Itachi."

In a flash of imperceivable swiftness, he had thrown a dagger across the room. It lodged onto my headboard, inches from my head.

"Keep that under your pillow in case an intruder manages to sneak in, which I highly doubt." He ordered gruffly.

I could only nod numbly, thinking that if I had to be afraid of an intruder, then the intruder would have to be one cranky Itachi Uchiha.

* * *

"So what do you do for fun around here?" Irie and I were walking around 'richtown' or what I now called the mansion-filled boulevards of the underground. I seemed to have nothing to do during the 'day' so I jumped at the chance to explore with her.

She glanced at me with exaggerated shock. "In case you haven't noticed, richtown is dedicated to _fun._"

"Right." I said, slapping my forehead with the same exaggeration. "Well, what do you do to _not_ have fun around here?"

"Um... when you count out the partying, drinking, and drugs there are the giant propellers where everyone gets a different kind of high." She suggested and I was, at once, baffled.

"Giant propellers?" I didn't think I heard right.

"Yeah, what do you think is keeping the temperature around here freezing?" She said, as blunt as always.

"Wow. So _that's_ why it's breezy all the time." The more I thought about it, the more it made sense. I mean, there couldn't be any ventilation around here unless it was artificial. "Genius."

"I thought so too." She took my arm. "It's not far from here since the rich enjoy most of cold. The poorer you are, the more unbearably hot it gets."

"How do you decide who's rich around here." I inquired. I was starting to notice that it seemed to get even more freezing as we traveled. No wonder Irie had lent me one of her leather coats.

"Well, the most dangerous people automatically become the richest. We are living in a world commanded by terror." Irie drawled. "So if anyone gives you a hard time, tell them you're with Itachi Uchiha."

"And if they don't believe me?" I muttered, for only me to hear.

Irie heard it anyway and dug around for a chain around her neck. It held a single ring. A _diamond_ ring was what she gave to me. "Here. Put it on and no one will doubt your relation."

"Irie... I can't..." I knew all too well what this was.

"Bullshit. Wear it. I can't stand the sight of it on me anymore. It's not like it means anything now." She told me, and my heart bled for her. Despite her rough exterior, Irie was actually a very compassionate creature.

"He doesn't deserve you." I told her directly. The ring perfectly fit my ring finger, looking so classic and elegant. It had a huge diamond set in white gold. The diamond had a pear cut meaning it was shaped like a teardrop, or blood (more likely considering Itachi). But I wondered whether it had belonged to Mikoto.

She smiled wanly. "I told him the exact same thing."

"I bet you did." I grinned, thinking it was indeed just like her. _Irie Uchiha_, the warrior of truth!

* * *

The giant propellers were the scariest pieces of machinery I'd ever seen in my life. They were innumerable and enormous, creating a wide semicircular wall of full blast wind.

We were miles away when I couldn't get any closer from the sheer force of the gales.

"Let's stop here." Irie advised solemnly.

"No shit." I replied, using her catchphrase teasingly.

She stuck her tongue out at me before turning to a huge group of teenagers who were holding ropes that looked like they reached and were hooked on to unmoving parts of the propellers.

Irie started conversing with them and gesturing in my direction when it suddenly hit me. They were going air-surfing. I felt my blood run cold. _I can't do this._


End file.
